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Are Employees Gaming Your Incentive Program?
Nov 29, 2011 by Confero Inc.
People tend to do those things for which they are rewarded. To encourage employees to provide the customer service promised to our customers, employee incentive and recognition programs are put into place to reward employees who engage in desired behaviors or who achieve specific outcomes.
Desired behaviors can be measured by mystery shopping programs, manager reports, audits, customer feedback measures and performance reviews. Specific outcomes can be measured by sales amounts, referral numbers and the like.
No incentive program is perfect and, over time, sometimes employees figure out a way around the system to “earn” the incentive. In other words, sometimes employees “game the system”.
Here are some common games we see. We hope they help you in planning to avoid them.
The Game: Trick the Technology
If an organization uses technology alone to measure key service metrics and reward performance with incentives, the system is usually an easy target for gaming the system.
The modify the order trick. A mystery shopper overheard a training conversation at the first of two drive through windows at a quick service restaurant. When the mystery shopper attempted to hand the employee payment, the mystery shopper heard the trainer saying “No, never just accept the payment. Always be sure to click on Modify Order then click Ok before you accept the customer’s payment. This will restart the timer on our transactions so our service times will look good.”
The ring up single items as multiples trick. At a grocery store checkout, the cashier entered a fresh bagel purchase as
Get to Know the QR Code
Nov 29, 2011 by Confero Inc.
Are QR codes confusing to you? They were confusing to us at first, too. Mostly, we found them confusing because, at Confero, we use the term Quality Review (QR) to refer to our detailed process of quality assurance for each mystery shopping or audit report. We are now getting used to seeing “QR” (Quick Response) codes everywhere. If you have customers who have Smartphones, “QR Code” is a good term to understand.
QR codes are those odd looking square patterns that seem to be cropping up everywhere. If you have not noticed one, look at most any print magazine ad and you’ll find one easily.
Here’s how they work:
NRF’s Annual Top 10 Retailers for Customer Service Announced
Nov 28, 2011 by Confero Inc.
The NRF Foundation, the research and education arm of the National Retail Federation, has announced the top 10 retailers for excellent customer service selected by shoppers in the seventh annual NRF Foundation/American Express Customers' Choice survey.
The survey asked 9,374 shoppers which retailer provides the best customer service. According to shoppers, the ten finalists for customer service, in alphabetical order, are:
Customer Service During Hectic Times
Sep 20, 2011 by Confero Inc.
Steady customer traffic is what every retail company wants in its stores, but do companies perform as well during the unexpected busy times as they do for the expected high-volume periods?
Companies benefit from an increased number of customer visits only if associates meet customer demands during the rush. To do this, companies need to prepare an approach and strategy to adapt for larger crowds. Companies anticipate busy times, such as the holidays, by stocking up with the right items, carrying items within the appropriate price ranges and learning from past holiday trends about which items to carry and how many. As Inc.com points out, some companies prepare well for the fast-paced holiday selling time by instructing employees to be honest about possible wait times.
Case Studies Show Unexpected Mystery Shopping Benefits
Sep 20, 2011 by Confero Inc.
Companies can realize unanticipated rewards when they change their approach to how shoppers gather the information or add mystery shop sections. As the examples below illustrate, the rewards may include improved safety measures and even the discovery of website pitfalls, to name two.
For an automotive client, adding non customer service questions to the mystery shopper survey resulted in valuable data and potential savings in safety-related areas for the company. The company consulted with other departments to gain ideas on areas that mystery shoppers should assess at their locations. In response, Confero added several safety-related questions to the survey. Following the visits with the added survey questions, management was able to quickly view mystery shop results through a secure web-based reporting system, including the information about safety procedures. The results: fast data on safety deficiencies at certain locations as well as decreased number of accidents, due to the increased accountability that the mystery shop program created. You can view other stories on our Automotive Mystery Shopping and Customer Experience Research Case Studies page.
September 2011: Low Hanging Fruit: These Stats Show Opportunities to Best the Competition
Sep 20, 2011 by Confero Inc.
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Customer perception of sincerity makes a big impact on customer satisfaction. A study conducted by Prime Performance revealed that 87% of bank and credit union call center customers believed that the representative was genuinely interested in helping them. When the customers felt this sincerity, 81% said that they were satisfied with the experience. When respondents felt that the representative was not genuinely interested in helping, only 18% of customers were satisfied.
Do consumers want to pay more for healthcare? In a recent Accenture survey, almost half of U.S. consumers said that they would be willing to pay more for quality customer service from their healthcare insurance providers.
Confero Featured in TrustAtlantic Bank Commercial
Sep 19, 2011 by Elaine Buxton
It was my pleasure to appear in a television commercial for TrustAtlantic Bank, a client and Confero's business banking partner. TrustAtlantic Bank focuses on assisting mid-market businesses, business owners and individuals with their financial needs. Two video spots were produced. In the 90-second version, I had an opporutnity to explain why TrustAtlantic Bank has been a reliable partner in building Confero’s business. A shorter 30-second version has been used in television advertising. Jim Beck, president and CEO of TrustAtlantic Bank.
Easy Telephone Training – Introducing Mobile Roleplay
Aug 30, 2011 by Confero Inc.
Telephone mystery shopping allows managers to learn details of employee-customer telephone interactions. Are associates placing clients on hold too long? Do they sound enthusiastic? Is the information in compliance? We have seen clients who use telephone mystery shopping in a variety of ways:
- Financial service and banking mystery shops measures if customer service representatives invite prospective customers into the branch to open a checking account.
- Law firm mystery shops help identify if associates provide accurate information on services.
- Restaurant and bar mystery shops monitor employee phone skills when handling reservations.
- Healthcare, medical practices and doctor’s office mystery shops learn if associates provide clear information, invite the caller in for a visit, and encourage prospective patients to choose their medical facilities.
- Automotive companies want to listen to associate calls to learn how they handle inquiries. They want to ensure that associates handle calls well, in order to gain more business from those “calling around” for prices on automotive services.
How to Calculate ROI for Mystery Shopping
Aug 30, 2011 by Confero Inc.
As 2012 budget time approaches, companies have one priority when choosing what items to include in their budgets: ROI. Now, more than ever, companies are assessing carefully how every service that they use contributes to ROI. Many service providers claim their offerings tie directly into ROI; however, they don’t clearly outline the numbers.
Managers need hard numbers to justify purchases, and mystery shopping services are no exception. Whether a company has been using a mystery shopping program for a long time, or is considering one for the first time, estimating ROI can help weigh the costs vs. the benefits of the program.
What Happens When Employee Dress Does Not Mirror Your Brand?
Aug 30, 2011 by Confero Inc.
No manager wants to be in this situation: An employee arrives at work wearing something that does not fit with the company dress code. When this happens, usually the manager talks to the employee about what not to wear to work. Whether the inappropriate clothes are flip flops or short shorts, the conversation is necessary because most managers acknowledge that employee appearances go hand in hand with a positive brand.
Employees are your brand, regardless of whether front line associates interact with loan customers, restaurant diners or car owners. Employee appearances matter because they impact customer experience. Within the retail environment, uniforms and consistent dress codes allow customers to easily identify the employees who can assist them. Formal business attire can inspire confidence within banking, financial service and automotive sales environments.
